WBO featherweight champion Robeisy Ramirez appears to be locked and loaded for his third and more than likely final appearance in 2023, as Keith Idec of BoxingScene.com has revealed a November 4th fight date that will take place at the Tahoe Blue Event Center in Stateline, Nevada. The news comes on the heels of the Nevada State Athletic Commission approving this date for Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc.
Ramirez, who won his world title earlier this year against Isaac Dogboe, returned to stop Satoshi Shimizu in the fifth round on the undercard of Naoya Inoue versus Stephen Fulton Jr.
Idec further stated that it appears that Ramirez will face the hard-hitting Mexican contender, Rafael Espinoza. Though it has been approved yet by the Nevada commission Bob Arum's Top Rank Inc. and Zanfer Boxing, the promoter of Espinoza seem to have come to an agreement as the bout would be shown on ESPN+.
Rafael Espinoza, hailing from Guadalajara, is not listed in the WBO featherweight ratings from the previous month, expectations are high that he will secure a spot among the top 15 contenders in the sanctioning organization's updated rankings for this bout to continue. Espinoza has won eighteen of his twenty-one professional wins by way of knockout, illustrating his punching power. At 6-foot-1, he stands taller than most featherweights as well.
It is somewhat clear that Bob Arum sees Ramirez as a potential opponent for Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue in the not-so-distant future. Ramirez was more than likely not just featured on the fight card in Japan out of circumstance, but more so as an introduction to the Japanese paying public. Inoue is looking to match Terence Crawford and become the second male two-division undisputed world champion when he faces Marlon Tapales later this year (though the bout isn't announced).
